What has happened to my country? I am old. I am 77. I pay to live in a gated community because I am scared.

Bravo Roberto near my home serves from a cooked-from-scratch, delicious menu, items not bought from a food service truck, not served up by a chain restaurant that loads Americans up on heavy doses of salt to achieve its number one rating. In these tragic times, food, friends, family, God, prayer and Christmas are about all we have left. And Bravo Roberto serves up every day in Floridas St. Lucie West a product we have allowed ourselves to be traded out of by the nasty liberals, the nasty Democrats, the

Yeah, I remember never locking the house...I wonder if we even had a key. It was a nice 2 story house, nice town, great neighbors...no murders, no kidnapping, playing outside all over the neighborhood without fear.

Max... hubby and I well remember the good old days...would love to have them back... we were FREE to play with our neighbors,enjoy the fresh air of outdoors,ride our bikes with out helmets, chalk up the sidewalk and not get in any trouble, with out running home to tell mom what we were doing, just be home before the street light came on.. we are both now retired, our two kids are grown, educated, and successful and it is just US...we are still FREE but we wonder for how long, with this Nation controlled by Government and ohama thugs..glad we are 70 and 75...our days ahead of us are not going to be as long as those behind us... enjoy what we have... wish you a Merry Christmas Freeper...♥

I dunno. I’m your age and live in Los Angeles. While I hear what you are saying, and tend to agree, I think it is often what you make it. I’m not scared here. I grew up in VA and practiced law there for 25 years before moving here. I just surround myself with ppl with whom I share the same values. I don’t find it that difficult. Maybe I’m just lucky. * shrug*

I was born in 1966, grew up in NYC during the Son of Sam and “Ford to NY: Go to Hell” 70’s. I went through my late teen and early 20’s through the 80’s marked by Bernie Goetz,Wilding and Crown Heights Riots.My youth was marked by widespread crime, corruption and strife.

For me,the good old days didn’t arrive until the 90’s with Rudy Giuliani, Joe Torre, a booming economy and a crack down on crime.

After 911 and Bloomberg, I relocated to Texas to finally escape the entrenched, permanent democrat hell.

It’s hard for some of us to imagine a good old days when we’ve spent nearly our entire lives dodging bullets, fighting with “Holder’s People” and dealing with the democrats EVERYDAY.

(Do NOT worry Texans...I loathe the Democrats and the only change to Texas I would make is to permanently relocate the lefties OUT of Texas)

Bought my town here in this north Georgia town in 2003. I’d looked at it several times over the period of almost a year. I never had to go find an agent or get a key from a lock box, it was ALWAYS open. During the whole time, no one entered and vandalized, stole or otherwise harmed it.

The only vandals we get in the subdivision are a racoon or two, sometimes a coyote, and once, even a brown bear. No thieves, though.

Born 1956 grew up on Long Island, NY. Rode bikes everywhere and no helmets. Slept often outside in tents summer nights with friends. We even had a short prayer in public schools until after 3rd grade. Would shovel snow and cut grass for a little extra spending cash. There was more discipline yet a better quality of freedom in a much safer and saner enviroment.

I remember when Saturday night was a big shopping night in my small town in the rural Midwest. Businesses stayed open until 10 pm. and during the summer there were band concerts in our main street band stand. I played in summer band until I graduated from high school. Fond memories from growing up in a small town during the 1950s and early 1960s.

Scary things from my youth which I recall were hiding under the desk during air raid drills; movies like Forbidden Planet and Them: one of my parents getting off the phone with a neighbor complaining about my behavior; avoiding church services and the like.

I was born in 1948. For a child in the 50’s it one endless time of freedom, innocence, dreams and joy. Not every moment to be sure, but the days rolled by and people in my everyday life were decent people.

Although I grew up in a later decade-—I knew the same as you—no locked doors, kindness from most people on the streets-—but I can remember when my parents had to lock up their house-—in the late eighties. They had druggie/homeless person break down their garage door to steal a car and had food stolen from their freezer.

This change is because of the breakup of the family unit and children being raised by non-family members-—people who don’t have a genetic interest in the children. TV is instilling their evil Values and Ethics——which erase the Christian Ethics that were prevalent in America until the public schools totally erased the Bible and God from the curricula. Public schools are teaching moral relativism-—forcing out Absolute Truth (God). When there is no God—there is only evil in man.

Christian Ethics formed the America you grew up in—the one America had until the 70’s. Now the Atheists shape kids with their TV and schools. Christianity gave us freedom to exist in the most perfect of societies on earth-—charity—hospitals, schools, freedom from inequality-— freedom from slavery, pederasty, polygamy which was prevalent in most societies. Christianity forced dignity for every single human—old or young.

Children are being programmed to be rude and selfish and Godless. It is actually quite easy-—let them watch TV and have no positive interaction with fathers. I spent a few days literally watching “children’s” programs-—supposedly “better” than average cartoons-—and I found it to be highly offensive. The underlying psychology behind the programs are evil and teach young children to be rude to adults and distrustful and destroys their innocence—so they can’t trust adults—even their parents. It undermines all Christian ethics-—and destroys their innocence. It makes children grow up cynical and hateful and non-trusting.

It makes children “think” they “know” everything-—but they know nothing of ethical human interactions which have to be habituated and practiced!!!! You can’t watch your life away-—and expect to contain Virtue when not practiced in actual interaction with mother and father-—who don’t even have dinner with their children anymore without the TV on. (Known since Aristotle but Classical thinking is being destroyed by our schools, so they can program idiots). TV is creating the Lord of the Flies world-—Ugly ideas from TV are forming children’s ethics because their parents are lazy and/or gone and will not be responsible for formation of the character of their children which is selfless-hard-work. Young parents today are mostly selfish and lazy and totally ignorant of child development-—schools and TV and parent magazines actually teach methodology to make your children dysfunctional.

So-—to reclaim your Ethics——you have to eliminate all TV programs which habituate evil ethical standards-——which is most programs-—most cartoons. That is the difference. At 77, you never had your ideas formulated and habituated by a television and movie house 24/7. You probably had both a mother and father instilling good habits and morality. That is the difference. You know Truth—you actually lived in a “normal” family who cared about you and your reality of life. They formed it and didn’t allow strangers to shape you in your young age.

You don’t live in this false world-—where things appear out of nowhere—where you get everything with no effort—food, water, light. You didn’t have your work ethic literally destroyed by a public school system, an intrusive government controlling all aspect of life, and TV.

BTW, the Prussian school system is set up to produce drones-—slaves-—”group think”. Get your grandkids OUT of public schools and throw out the TV. Then, with teaching Classical thinking—only then—will your children grow up to be moral, ethical human beings who can actually use Reason and Logic and Love other human beings.

Selflessness-—the main ingredient of Christianity is being erased. That is what you see-—the killing of the idea of Jesus. The Humanists have been trying to do this for 500 years. With technology and total control of education (by the Billy Ayers type) they have been able to control all perceptions of the last several generations. We now have non=thinking drones —Group “thinkers”—who are becoming the majority and are programmed to be immoral.

We had two acres of land. I remember my mother raking leaves, putting them in piles, and burning the leaves and branches. Perfectly legal. No permits required. Impossible to do now....not allowed.

One day I came home from school, and a number of oak trees on our property had been cut down with chain saws. As it turns out, a guy had knocked on our door and asked my mother if she wanted any trees cut down, for a small price. My mother pointed out some trees she wanted him to cut down, and the guy with the chainsaw did so. Shawn Hannity lives in the same general area, and nowadays you have to get a permit to cut down a tree, according to him.

Fourth of July.....as a kid, the fireworks started in the morning and continued all day. I could hear them in the neighborhood and beyond. It sounded like World War III throughout the day and night. Now, fireworks are banned.

We had Christmas trees in the class rooms, and sang Christmas carols and religious songs at school assemblies.
Now, it’s called winter holiday or some such crap. No religious songs allowed.

My parents sold my boyhood home in the 1970’s....it took three years to sell in a lousy real estate market. Sold for very little. Today, the home would be worth $ 1 million. From what I heard, the property taxes are more than $20,000 per year these days.

Also, boarding an airliner at Kennedy or La Guardia Airport as a kid was a breeze. No hassles. Now, you’re treated only slightly better than a prison inmate.

So far, I'm older than any of you who has posted. We didn't lock our cars in town and tended to leave the key in the car. I was sort of a tom boy and knocked myself out twice while “playing” - fell out of a tree and a baseball hit me when I was playing ball with the boys - all this before starting elementary school. Oh, yes, my brother had a BB gun and shot me in the nose - had to go to doctor to get the BB out. I shot birds with that gun.

When I was 3-4-5, I didn't know there was a difference in boys and girls. One day I was running around outside without a shirt on and someone said I was a girl and should have a shirt on. I went in the house and asked my mother why that person said that. I can't remember when I actually started wearing a shirt.

I first locked the front door in about 1963. One street over, someone broke into a doctor's house looking for drugs, so I started locking the front door since his house wasn't far from ours.

I think the country changed about twenty years ago. Now, it is the pits for personal security. I feel safe in my house because I made it safe. Outside my very small gated community, I am not safe. No one is safe outside anymore. One can have concealed carry but the fact one does that says outside is not safe.

Now, the govn. wants to take our guns. They can go pound dirt. This outcry about guns makes me want to buy some more if there is any left after this past week.

"For a child in the 50s it one endless time of freedom, innocence, dreams and joy. Not every moment to be sure, but the days rolled by and people in my everyday life were decent people."

Well, I grew up in the Leave it to Beaver, Ozzie and Harriet, and The Honeymooners era, myself.

Born in '46, in a rural area where we were poor, and strived to work our way out. I'm a Viet Nam era Vet, and saw the Hippies who now have succeeded in destroying any moral, social, economic, responsible, and Freedom values that most of us had, and we now are all locked and loaded for the soon-to-come day when the parasites decide their checks and EBT's have stopped coming, and they're gonna take what they think is THEIRS, because they are "Victims" of those "rich white bastards". Liberal teachings in Publik Skools in the past 4 decades have indoctrinated the Yewts to think they are owed a living, on the backs of others, while they are taught no skills or basic intelligence, but are bombarded with Diversity, Sensitivity, Equality, alternative lifestyles, how to have sex, etc.

With no fathers in the homes today, there is no discipline, no self-respect, no sense of responsibility for one's actions, or work ethic.

We've succeeded in creating a scene from Planet of the Apes where Charlton Heston screams "Damn you all to Hell.....", seeing what the country has done.

I was born in 62. I too, saw glimpses of the remaining vestiges of the America once was. The big steel mills of Buffalo, a busy downtown bustling with shopping, movie theaters, and pedestrians. There is nary a city where downtown is nothing but a cavern of high rise office space. Busy by day, a ghost town by night. Everyone leaves the democRAT run shattered cities and their welfare war zones.

36
posted on 12/23/2012 9:58:25 AM PST
by Ouderkirk
(Obama has turned America into an aristocracy of the unaccomplished.)

I remember riding my bike down to the Coast to Coast hardware store when I was 11 years old. I told the guy at the counter I needed some .22 ammo. All he said was “short, long, or long rifle?” A box of long rifle was 37 cents.....

“At 10 o 12 years old my best friend and I would ride our bikes down the railroad bed to the lake and take his dads boat out fishing all day. No life jackets or adult supervision.”

We were 12 yrs. old in ‘71 and took the bus downtown unsupervised to the movies....Just my cousin and I....Would go to the Woolworth counter where one of my aunts worked and have a burger and fries....Walk around town and catch the bus back home.....Never any trouble or violence.....I think of those days too often, it tugs at my heart in a powerful way, I’m not kidding, if feels like the loss of a family member or good friend because you know you will never see it again....COMPLETELY different America now.....

Born in ‘46 in the Adirondacks, too. I had an idyllic childhood where we were free to roam all day until suppertime or dark. Walked to and from evening school activities along with everyone else.

We were never afraid and no one was ever in any danger (other than the usual accidents). I even rode my bike all the way to the fort and spent the day exploring all over the fort grounds many times. Walked up a nearby mountain sometimes on the road and sometimes through the woods. Walked to the beach every day in the summer. We never locked our doors, even when we went out of town and no one ever broke in or stole anything.

My children are a little younger than you and, although they had a much freer childhood than today’s children, there were already lots of restrictions and I wish they could have grown up as I did. I pity my grandchildren and their children... I’m thankful to live in Texas now which is probably as close as you can get to the good ol’ days anymore!

Its hard for some of us to imagine a good old days when weve spent nearly our entire lives dodging bullets...

Well yeah, its hard to imagine what you didn't experience. I grew up in the fifties and by comparison to anything since it was indeed a halcyon era. Leftists strive mightily to tell you it never was like that--"Leave it to Beaver" never existed they say. Well, no, mothers didn't do housework in high heels and pearls like June Cleaver but the rest actually happened.

Poeple went to church, went to work, joined Boy Scouts and played Little League, families saw movies together at the drive in, joined bowling leagues; left doors unlocked, cars parked along the street with windows open in the summer (no AC in most cars, but nobody even missed it) and keys hanging in the ignition.

Life for minorities was better then than it has been since, even though they have more money now, they have lost the community cohesion that kept them together, with intact families and lower crime rates.

The postwar era was perhaps the best time to come of age that America ever saw, and almost certainly will never see again. Almost overnight, as the decade turned to the sixties, the wheels began to come off, and we have never recovered.

I was up in the Tri-Lakes. Moved to AZ in 95 with my daughter. It was still rural here even then in a lot of ways.

But Tupper, Saranac and Lake Placid are now about destroyed so I hear. The ecos wrecked what was left of the logging industry (my families’ business for 100 years). Now it’s a hipster retreat with regulations for everything you can think of.

You’re right! It’s different and “you can’t go back.” I made the mistake of trying for 6 years after my husband died, but I couldn’t take it. Drove through Silver Bay where my father was born and raised and Grandpa’s house had been torn down and dorms were in its place. There is still a lot of wilderness, but Lake Placid and Lake George are nightmares (not that they were much better back in the day)! Essex County is drug-infested. There are frequent drug busts, homes are broken into, vacant houses have been burned, even the rectory in town was broken into and valuables stolen, and lots of stupid vandalism like destroying window boxes, flower gardens and park lights! All unheard of in my childhood.

You can still start a business, even if the takers’ll say jealously, “you didn’t build that”. You can buy a Glock and become proficient for the purpose of self defense for you and your family. You can start an IRA and invest your money for YOUR future. You can joke about the Wookie and joke about the concussed Hillary’s fat a$$ without repercussion.

These are the good old days. Cheer up, things will be worse.

48
posted on 12/23/2012 10:25:20 AM PST
by The_Media_never_lie
(Actually, they lie when it suits them! The crooked MS media must be defeated any way it can be done!)

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